Help prevent crime, before, during and after Yuletide

It is barely three weeks to the celebration of Christmas and many Christians are bracing themselves up for the event, which is seen as one of the most important celebrations on the Christian calendar.

At the marketplaces and elsewhere, business has already begun picking up, as shop owners have stocked up a large variety of goods in anticipation of good sales.

While all these are going on, it is obvious that criminals are also planning to capitalise on the situation to carry out their nefarious activities, as many people are likely to take their eyes off the ball as far as their personal security is concerned.

For instance, many people will be tempted to bring large sums of money home in their quest to spend it in bits during the festivities. Such people are likely to attract the attention of criminals who may try to rob them.

During this season, criminals also dominate the marketplaces and steal at the least opportunity when anxious shoppers slightly lose their guard while they carry out their shopping.

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It is also on record that around this season, many drivers engage in reckless driving, either on long distance routes or sometimes even in town where they are supposed to drive according to prescribed speed limits. In the end, many deaths are recorded from needless accidents all over the country.

All these criminal acts can only be perpetrated if the Police Service does not devise strategies to ensure the safety of citizens.

That is why the Daily Graphic finds the decision by the Ghana Police Service to deploy about 14,000 of its personnel to town to provide security for the people not just laudable but also necessary to prevent any escalation in crime and unnecessary deaths on our roads.

However, we must be quick to add that it should not be business as usual because the criminals have adopted different strategies which could easily outwit the police if care is not taken.

At the marketplaces, the police can be in plain clothes to be able to apprehend criminals who will attempt to steal from shoppers.

The police must also intensify patrols within the city and residential areas in particular to prevent robberies.

We believe that the normal routine of mounting road barriers which often creates huge vehicular traffic is not effective because most criminals do not join queues to be searched by the police. The police should be able to conduct random checks anytime of the night, particularly in quiet neighbourhoods.

We commend the police for their proactive stance and expect that criminal activities will reduce before, during and after the Yuletide.